Hip Flexor Pain: Lifting My Leg

I’m on the computer 18 hours a day, 7 days a week.

But I got fat again. Here’s the summer health plan: Run every day.

No routes, or timing, or planning. Just run. Every day.

OK, so far so good, like tonight–the weather is perfect–soft, summer breeze. No humidity.

Except my hip is hurting. Specifically, my hip flexor.

After a mile, it’s starting to hamper my stride. By the time I pass a local bar, people in the outdoor patio are giving me a concerned look. I’m running with a noticeable limp, and I’m bent over a little, breathing heavy, like I got shot during a bank heist, taking one shot in the shoulder and another in the leg.

When I get home, I research hip flexor pain on the Interwebs. It helps you lift your thigh up toward your stomach. With my current gut, it doesn’t have that far to go.

This makes sense: One site said a sore hip flexor is often the sign of underutilized glutes. From sitting too much. They don’t do the work they should, so the hip flexor picks up the slack. My ass is like a union worker slowing down the line.

What to do? You should exercise the glutes more, and stretch the hip flexors.

One stretch is called, “Fire Hydrant.” According to Athletico.com, this is what you do:

 

Fire hydrants

• Begin by placing both hands and knees on the floor; your back should form a tabletop.
• Keep both legs bent in a 90-degree angle and toes flexed throughout the duration.
• While keeping hips forward, lift your right leg out to the side until it is parallel to the ground or at maximum height. Pause and bring leg back to start position.
• Repeat for 12 reps and repeat with the opposite leg.”

I’m lifting my leg for health. Hip flexor pain be gone.